Slip Off Shore

Last weekend, Nina and Devin came to Conway to spend a day on the lake with us. When they got to town friday night we went to Bears Den for pizza and drinks.

...and suffered through some awful karaoke renditions of Christina Aguilera and Lady Gaga.

Saturday morning, Nina and I took all 4 dogs for a long, 90 degree walk on the Salem trail to wear them all out before we left them for the day.

And it definitely worked!

When Sean got back from his teaching orientation in LR, we loaded the boat with food, drinks, and a lake mix on the Ipod then headed up the road to Beaverfork.

{Devin, Justin, and Sean}

We couldn't wait to get on the water. It was our first lake day of the summer! The weather was gorgeous and it was a great day for relaxing.

{Me and Nina}

They brought the Turbo charged Honda jet ski!

And took it for a spin.

Me and Nina toured the lake for a little house hunting.

And this is the one we will be buying one day...

Dream big!

Sean took to the water with his wake-skis.

Then J-Young gave it a go.

Not to be outdone by the boys, Nina took a turn.






That's my girl!

{Nina and Dev before his turn.}

{Me and the boys}

{Me and the boy}

{A loving stare across the boat.. Haha:)}

{Our baby cozy in his cool cave!}

{Us girls}

Oliver is so handsome in his life jacket!

Laying out. On the lake. In the sun. With a strawberry margarita.
This is the life!



{Nina and the poop on the way in.}

{The captains pulling us up to the dock.}

Back at the house, we were sun-drained and starving. While the boys worked on fixing the jet-ski after a mishap on the lake, Nina and I fixed BBQ pizza for dinner and strawberry shortcake for dessert.

Dylan came by after work and joined us for dinner. And Oliver was so happy to see him!


We joked and laughed with no tv after dinner. It was a great time.

The big boys were still a little tired from our walk.

Tiger bear even dozed off sitting up, poor guy!

Too much excitement for one day:)

XOXO,
Katie Follow @ktgray13

Life with a new puppy

I picked up a stray puppy last week and we have welcomed him into our loving home. After laying limp and lifeless for the first 48 hours, he has emerged from his shell and fully lived up to his new name, Owen, meaning "young fighter". We gave him that name to honor his survivor spirit, but he's got spunk for miles!

We've got a bit of a biting habit to contend with. Although Oliver has the patience of Job and won't retaliate, I don't want him to be unhappy, so we've got to take care of it quick! They are certainly entertaining together, as you can see.




Oliver was an atypical puppy, being that accidents in the house were virtually non-existent, he never chewed, and his puppy biting was minimal. Any puppy advice is welcome!

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BBQ Pizza and Strawberry Shortcake

We had a wonderful summery weekend at Beaverfork Lake here in Conway with 90+ temperatures and abundant sunshine. The Gardner-Moore's came up for the weekend, with a jet-ski and both pups in tow. After a long, day on the lake, Nina and I made a barbecue pizza with baked beans and cole slaw and I had pre-made some strawberry shortcake for dessert.

Since we had just had Esperanza Bonanza a few weeks earlier, I wanted to do something different with our boston butt than plain ole sandwiches and brainstormed this pizza while daydreaming at work (Shhh.) It's as simple as assembly and is a great way to use up a big ole butt! I made the strawberry shortcake a little different too and it was FABULOUS! See what you think.

BBQ Pizza

Ingredients:

• store bought pizza crust
• about 1/2 cup ranch dressing
• about 1/2 cup bbq sauce (whatever you prefer)
• 2-3 cups of pulled pork
  
• 1 can crushed pineapple or tidbits
• 1 red onion
• 16 oz Italian blend cheese (Mozzarella and Provolone)

Mix Ranch and bbq sauce to make pizza sauce and spread onto dough. Evenly sprinkle with pork.

Add pineapple, chopped onion, then sprinkle with cheese.

Bake at 350 degrees for 15-18 minutes.

I didn't take a pic of the finished product...I was too busy eating!

The strawberry shortcake was so creamy and yummy for a summer day.

Strawberry Shortcake

Ingredients:

• Angel Food cake or Short cake
  
• Strawberries, sliced
  
• 1 pk instant french vanilla pudding and required milk
• 4 oz cream cheese, softened
  
• 8 oz cool whip

Mix sliced strawberries with a couple tbs sugar and about 1/3 cup water to create a syrup. Let chill in fridge over night. Make pudding according to package directions and chill for recommended time (usually 5 minutes for instant). Beat in softened cream cheese and then gently fold in cool whip.

Slice angel food and top with strawberries and cream.

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“Niente accade per caso.”

Meaning, "Nothing happens by chance."

On this day, my clinical instructor and I had a vehicle modification assessment in DeQueen, Arkansas. Linda the OT and I headed that way at 7:30 am. About 15 minutes from our destination, she saw the sign for DeQueen was not the direction gps was taking us and decided to re-route. After assessing the client, he asked us to visit his community college to assess the bathrooms for accessibility.

This was a surprise.

He drove his power wheelchair to the car and pulled himself inside, which meant it needed to be driven back around the house onto the deck…and I was the woman for the job. If you have never driven a power wheelchair, and this was actually a first for me, it’s no easy feat! It takes a certain finesse only practice can provide, and I was a power chair rookie on the loose.

I gently pressed the joystick forward and my head flew back with a jolt as I sped down the street …You would be amazed how fast 10mph feels in a chair! I was wide-eyed! I ventured over a curb (scared to death) through a gravel drive with potholes (petrified) and managed to wind around the ramp almost running off the edge only twice. What I wouldn’t give to have a video of me accidentally off-roading into the grass and almost crashing into the man’s car. Comical!

When we finished and had eaten lunch, we started the drive back. GPS presented a different route than the way we came in, and we decided to take it to see something new…And you’ll never believe what we saw.

Somewhere near Lake Greeson on Hwy 70 between Dierks and Amity, a tiny black poof catches our eye, right on the edge of the highway. I gasp, “Ohmahgosh!”

“What is that!?” Linda says, “Is that a... bear!?”

No seriously. We were in the middle of nowhere with forest on each side, so hey…we didn’t know! She immediately slowed the car and turned around and said, “Do you want it?”

“Not if it’s a bear!” I said.

Once we were near I saw the sweetest baby puppy face munching on grass in the summer heat. As I tried to coax him near, he scurried away from me. After a failed attempt to bribe with Rolos, I took a few quick steps towards him to scoop him up, but he darted with fear into the road. I screamed “NOOO!” and turned with both hands over my ears to see a car followed by an 18-wheeler approaching.

They both swerved into what would have been oncoming traffic and missed the little guy by inches. He ran back into the grass and just before he escaped into the woods, Linda made a dash and pounced on him like lightening. “Here ya go!” she said as she handed him to me. He thrashed around making terrified noises, like a wild animal. But the minute we sat in the car and started on our way, he laid motionless in the crook of my arm for the 2.5 hour drive.

After an immediate bath...

...hours of tweezing ticks from his limp body, and about 3 hours of restless sleep before work the next day, boy has he come back to life! He's a feisty little sucker, a yapper, and a biter and ever is he stubborn! But he's sweet as can be and needs some loving...and some intense training.

We are avid Dog Whisperer followers and have always known that before bringing another dog in permanently, we would have a trial period first to make sure that they were right for the family dynamic we already have in place.

{Oliver never left his side from the time I brought him in. He didn't try to play at all, but just laid beside him and watched.}

Our first goal was to get him healthy and safe.

We have named him Owen, which means "young fighter".

We took him for his shots and are taking care of the worms and fleas. Whether or not his forever home is here or with another family, he's so much better off than fending for himself on Hwy 70 in the blazing heat. It stormed the night I brought him home, and I thought about what he would be doing, alone, in the wild storm. I thought, what if we hadn't gone the route we did, or what if the client hadn't asked us to make the trip to his school and we had left hours earlier. I thank God we were led that direction and little bear Owen is safe from harm.

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Backstreet Brawl Wiffleball 2010

As much time as I spend at Cantrell Park (aka Sean's parents' backyard) I figured it was about time for a wiffleball tournament post. I snapped alot of pics this particular tournament because Mrs. Pam needed some shots of Snake to send to the Wiffleball Hall of Fame, to which he's being inducted in July.
Oh, you hadn't heard??
...It's kind of a big deal.
We're heading to Cincinnati for the big event. You can check him out on ESPN. :)

Here he is with Woody, who I lent my artist's hand to a little while back. Actually, just a few minutes ago, I was commissioned to paint a "Woody" for an up-and-coming wiffleball field in town, so check back to see how that turns out!

After lots of bad weather threatened to cancel, Saturday turned out to be one bright, hot and sweaty day. Here's some of the spectators who braved the heat. And Oliver getting some lovin' from a cutie-patootie. I can't wait til he has a lil one to play with!

{Oliver and Princess}

{Sean and his Dad}

{Sean, Joe, and Snake of the Hooters Bomb Squad}

Now for some shots of wiffle in action...

{Set-up}

{Wind-up}


{Follow-through}


Sean's dad looks on as he throws out a pitch. I'm just looking at how neatly lined up Sean's hairline is...Man, I've gotten pretty good at that!



His batting facial expressions are the best.




{Mrs. Pam and her Princess}

{Me watching with the babies}
One of these days...pretty soon now...we won't have to drive 2 hours every time there's a tournament. I admire his dedication, but can't wait to cut down on all the travel time.
Oh, for the love of wiffleball.

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